The toy, a 13-inch, blond-haired muscled figure whose limbs could be stretched to nearly four feet, was launched by Kenner in the ’70s. He had a dog named Fetch Armstrong, and a sibling, Evil X-Ray Wretch Armstrong. Attempts to turn him into a movie stretch back to 1998, when Disney tried to make the film with Danny DeVito and later Jackie Chan.

Hasbro’s Goldner reacquired the rights, and Oedekerk is starting from scratch. He has most recently been working on a sequel to Kung Pow: Enter the Fist, writing, directing and starring in the martial-arts spoof.